The layout of the club is very important, I want people to feel that they are coming into top notch facilities. I think we will need some help on interior design and the fittings, so if anyone knows anyone who has an eye for style and understands hospitaility, please get them to contact me.
When I get back I intend to do a "tour" of the poker clubs and casinos in the UK, as I'm sure they will give us plently of ideas. I have heard the Western and the Broadway are the most impressive, but everyone has different tastes.
I see a few posts on numbers of tables, room etc. Our plan will to be provide capacity for 500 runners within the 15,000 sq ft of premises. However, realistically this WILL ONLY be used if we managed to land a huge event such as a WPT or poker becomes massivley more popular in 5 years. On a day to day basis I have only budgeted for an average of 100 players per day including cash, STT and tournaments, so we are planning to have tables set out as follows:
1. A Main Tournamant Area : 25 tables with over generous space used for STT, Tourneys and Cash Games, open evey day
2. Surplus Tournamant Area : This area will have 25 more tables, 250 chairs, but will be CLOSED OFF with a partician on a day to day basis and is just there for increases in demand outside of the "norm", which may NEVER happen. this does however allow us to run 2/3 different comps at the same time, but in reality, its just spare capacity for the future.
3. High Rollers Cash Room : like the Bellagio, there will be 3 or 4 tables here for higher limit cash games, probably £1000 min sit down level. Initially I expect not to use this room on a daily basis, maybe only at festival time, but it will give the playershwho want to play high stakes a private luxurious area to play in. I really want big high limit players to come to the club, and we will be actually being pro-active in ARRANGING games in this room, ringing people up etc (just like my home game). When younger players see high limit games it gives them something to work up to, this is the culture in the US, you work up the limits as your bankroll increases.
4. TV Room : This will have the WPT style "peek" camera system TV table and have an interview/relaxation room attached. We can use it for some of our own finals, put a live feed into the main bar and maybe even online in the future.
So, it total we'll have 50 ish tables and use the remainging area to provide hospitality.
An 8ft x 4ft table is 32 sq ft + room for chairs and a walkway
To get a general guide, although tables DO VARY is size. I spoke the the card room manager at the Bellagio, who told me based on "their" tables that it was a absolute minimum of 100 sq ft for a 10 seater table with 10 chairs (this is what I worked the Vic Club and Luton at - yes I measured them, sad I know, but that is so so cramped).
So, if we used 150 sq ft as a guide, +50% on Vic and Luton, (although this is overestimated due to table around the perimeter not need the 1m walkway), that would be about 7,500 sq ft for poker, and 7,500 sq foot for the rest, sounds about right. We havn't even chosen out tables yet, or chairs, or anything, but with 15,000 sq ft, we play around with things to create the best of everything. These premises are bigger than a lot of casinos, so is we can't provide a poker club with space and luxury, we 're not doing out job.
I sort of know that 150sq ft is about right and my bar in my house is 260 sq ft and we had 2 table in there and it was a bit too small, although we had seating for spectators and room Colcherster Kev / Simon Nowab.
I've posted a picture of the VIP bar in the Bellagio, this is the level of spec we need to be going for.
